Misconception of other folk and country is fair for people from all parts of the world. Especially for young ones. More especially - if you stay your first 20+ years in your motherland location under your parents' helpful wing.
According to my personal observations, young people nowadays are much more naive and helpless. Well, this is more concerning my country youth, but this can be seen abroad also.
1. They don't know how to get information. They never went to "paper" libraries studying tons of literature to get some peace of valuable data. They believe all what is in "Wiki" and all their analytical mind-job is to read comments under FB or Twitter pics.
2. After 15-16 years they have little or no handwriting. Handwriting is vital for brain development up to 22 years.
3. Parents decide what is better. Kids have less own mind.
4. Kids communicate "live" less. All through the screens. When we were kids if we needed help or advice we went to the adults and had a conversation - both for education and fun. How often nowadays generation have "let's speak" time? "Ok, google" is the better option for them.
5. Such modern trends as "non-slapping" upbringing (slapping - not beating!!) overwhelming child protection from everything - that brings up a tender butterfly, not a ready-to-life, curious, active youth.
6. Less sports, more gadgets.
So, no matter Thai or Chinese, Arab, American or Russian - young people are interested less in life around the world, than couple of generations back. No wonder - misconception is the lesser evil we face now.

First off, it depends on where this 'survey' has been conducted. In the lesser known unis, the students tend to follow local protocol and tend to go with the flow, i.e. find an average station in life like running a coffee shop or perhaps selling food. Very few will advance beyond the supermarket checkout counter person or factory worker.
On the other hand, students attending the rather more upmarket places will have a sense of entitlement, perhaps partly due to the status of the uni, and how many of them got there through benificence rather than qualification.
This second group is also more likely to have travelled and have an idea of what lies beyond both physical and cultural boundaries.

I grew up in the Straits settlements, and have my birth nationality listed as 'British Subject'. We interacted well with the forces while they were there. As to whether the forces were there to keep the 'natives' under control is a moot question. They were basically cloistered in their bases with little interaction, and the forces, while providing food and lodging for their personnel, did not really leave them flush with cash.
Growing up as a teen, I had friends both local and expatriate, not so long ago ran into an old Scottish lass who after marriage seems to have trouble finding her waistline. But I digress.

Back to topic. My kids went to an average school (but not government) and I made sure they had the opportunity to travel from a young age. They've spent time away as exchange students and speak at least two languages. I'm an old stick-in-the-mud, so have kept them close to my way of thinking. So when one of them came back from an exchange stint with a rather holier-than-thou attitude (I, me and myself) that was soon nipped in the bud.

I've also attended some PTA meetings as a parent here in Thailand and is something I would avoid like the plague.. Expat teachers will know..

My family is all over the world, I've just chosen to put down roots here in Thailand. From a broad perspective, most people want the same thing. Shelter. Food. Peace. Ambition comes later. It's just that the language is different, and perhaps the lack of opportunity to achieve your dreams.

So what do the locals think of the expats? A lot depends on whom you ask, and how you ask...

My eldest daughter, 32, went to the Netherlands this year for a 3 week seminar. She spent weekends traveling to Germany and Amsterdam. She came back a different person and wants to go back next yr. to study for 2 yrs. for a second MA. She says that if you have an MA from Thailand it's not worth much but if you have a degree from a foreign univ. it opens more doors here and accords you more respect. My youngest, 22, graduated this yr. She was a Korean studies major and is now teaching Korean to private students. She generated the work on her own. When she started at the Univ. we moved to Hua Hin and she remained in Bangkok, renting a room and coping by herself. She grew up quickly and is very independent, self-confident, intelligent and able to think logically. If you don't overprotect them and do everything for them they learn to cope and develop into real human beings. I think that parents are the real detriment in Thai society. The desire to preserve the status quo and control everything keeps their children from developing into responsible adults. But that's just my opinion and we know that opinions are like anus's; everybody has one and they're worth what you pay for them.

First off, it depends on where this 'survey' has been conducted. In the lesser known unis, the students tend to follow local protocol and tend to go with the flow, i.e. find an average station in life like running a coffee shop or perhaps selling food. Very few will advance beyond the supermarket checkout counter person or factory worker.

VincentD , Straits settlement or straight jacket ?

Great disservice to unis and their students to make ridiculous and insulting statements like this .

As a 80 year old ex service man who served in Malaya , Singapore and Hong Kong , cloistered in their bases think not !

May not have been flush with cash but what we were paid , unless there was deductions for family , was spent locally .